Shower head



United States Patent Inventor Buckley Crist Plainl'ield, New Jersey755,562

Aug. 27, 1968 Dec. 8, 1970 Jaclo, Inc.

Brooklyn, New York 1 a corporation of New York Appl. No. Filed PatentedAssignee SHOWER HEAD 9 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

u.s.c| 239/449, 239/577, 239/590.3

Int.Cl 805b 1/30 Field ol'Search 239/443, 444, 445, 446, 448, 449, 577,578, 582, 590.3

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,133,147 10/1938 Mortimore239/577 2,785,881 3/1957 Dolan 239/577X 3,107,861 10/1963 Penkoff...239/577X 3,358,934 12/1967 Moeh Primary Examiner-M. Henson Wood, Jr.Assistant Examiner-Michael Y. Mar Attorney-Gravely, Lieder and WoodruffABSTRACT: A shower head having a body provided with an outwardly openingcavity across which a perforated disk extends. The disk is divided intoinner and outer segments by an underlying diaphragm element whichfurther creates a chamber inwardly from the second segment. A valve isprovided for optionally admitting fluid into the second chamber from thecavity and another valve is provided for admitting fluid into thecavity. Both valves are operable by a single control lever,

PATENTED nEc 8197B SHEET 1 0F 2 INVENTOR BUCKLEY CRIST- M M AT T0 RNEYSPATENTED nu: exam SHEET 2 OF 335455 1 INVENTOR BUCKLEY CRIST 5Y1} jwgygATTORNEYS SHOWER HEAD This invention relates in general to fluidspraying devices and, more particularly, to shower heads.

Conventional shower heads, whether they are of the fixed or hand-heldvariety, contain numerous parts, most of which are metal. Many of theseparts are machined to relatively precise tolerances and, as a result,conventional shower heads are not only heavy, but also quite expensive.While excessive weight is not significant in the case of fixed showerheads, it is as far as the more versatile hand-held variety isconcerned. Indeed, it is desirable to have hand-held shower heads aslight as possible, not only to afford easy manipulation of the sprayissuing therefrom, but also to prevent the head from damaging the showerstall, drain basin, or other facility in which it is used, should itinadvertently be .dropped.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide a compactlightweight shower head suitable for attachment to a flexible hose sothat it can be hand-held. Another object is to provide a shower head inwhichthe intensity and flow rate of the spray can be varied andthe'water supply can be cutoff completely through the manipulation of asingle control lever. A further object is to provide a shower head whichis simple in construction and economical to manufacture.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent hereinafter.

The present invention is embodied in a shower head having a bodyprovided with a cavity which is traversed by a perforated member. Adividing element engages the perforated member, dividing it into firstand second segments, and further creates a chamber underlying the secondsegment. A valve is associated with the chamber for admitting fluid toit from the cavity, and another valve admits fluid to the cavity itself.These valves are operated by control means carried by the body.

The invention also consists in the parts and in the arrangements andcombinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed. In theaccompanying drawings which form part of the specification and whereinlike numerals and letters refer to like parts wherever they occur:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shower head constructed in accordancewith and embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the shower head;

FIGS. 3,4,5 and 6 are sectional views taken along lines 33, 4-4, 5-5 and6-6, respectively, of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view similar to FIG. 2,but showing the valve flap and valve element in their open positions;and

FIG. 8 is a transverse sectional view similar to FIG. 4, but showing thevalve flap and valve element in their open positions.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, 2 designates a shower headincluding a body 4 which is preferably molded from a durable plastic asan integral unit and has an elongated handle 6 which merges at its oneend into a cup-shaped mouth portion 8. At its opposite end the handle 6is provided with a threaded bore 10 adapted to receive a fitting (notshown) on the end of a flexible hose (not shown). The bore 10 opens intoan inlet channel 12 within the handle 6, and the channel 12, in turn,opens into a cavity 14 within the cup-shaped mouth portion 8 through anaperture 16 located in a partition web 18 formed integral with the body4 at the juncture of the handle 6 and the mouth portion 8. The partitionweb 18 separates the inlet channel 12 from the cavity 14 and includes aplurality of guide ribs 20 arranged circumferentially about the aperture16 in spaced relation to its periphery. The ribs 20 project into thechannel 12 and in so doing taper outwardly away from the aperture 16.

The cavity 14 opens outwardly from the mouth portion 8 at an annular rim22 which inwardly terminates at an annular shoulder 24. Projecting intocavity 14 and also forming part of the mouth portion 8 is a mountingpost 26 which is fitted with a threaded metal bushing 28 disposedcoaxially with respect to the rim 22 and the shoulder 24. Finally, themouth portion 8 integrally includes locating boss 30 which also projectsinto the cavity 14, but is offset radially from the mounting post 26.

The mouth or open end of the cavity 14 is covered by spray disc 32 andan annular elastomeric diaphragm 34, the former of which urges thelatter against the shoulder 24 within the confines of the rim 22. Morespecifically, the spray disc 32 is provided with a multiplicity ofapertures 36, and along its periphery it turns inwardly in the provisionof a peripheral lip 37 which is forced against that portion of thediaphragm 34 located at the shoulder 24 by a machine screw 38 threadedinto the bushing 28. Accordingly, a fluidtight seal is formed betweenthe diaphragm 34 and the lip 37 on the one hand and between thediaphragm 34 and the shoulder 24 on the other so that water dischargesfrom the cavity 14 only through the apertures 36. The inner margin ofthe diaphragm 34 is spaced inwardly from the mounting post 26, and atthat margin the diaphragm 34 is provided with an outwardly projectingannular lip 39 which bears against and forms a seal with the inwardlypresented face of the spray disc 32. The lip 39, in effect, divides thespray disc 32 into a circular inner segment 40 and an annular outersegment 42, the latter of which overlies an annular chamber 44 which isseparated from the cavity 14 by the diaphragm 34. Adjacent to thejuncture of the handle 6 and the end portion 8 the diaphragm 34 isprovided with an elongated aperture 46 (FIG. 3) which is normallycovered by a valve flap 48 also formed from an elastomeric material. Thevalve flap 48 is either vulcanized to or formed integral with thediaphragm 34 at one end of the aperture 46 so that it can swing fromopen position wherein it is folded outwardly away from the aperture 46(FIG. 8) to a closed position in which it bears against the inwardlypresented surface of the diaphragm 34 (FIG. 4) in surrounding relationto the aperture 46. When in the latter position, water is'precluded fromflowing from cavity 14 into the annular chamber 44. The valve flap 48further carries a rigid actuating tab 52 which is adhesively orotherwise securely bonded to it and projects into the cavity 14.Finally, the diaphragm 34 is provided with an aperture 53 which alignswith and accepts the outer end of the locating boss 30 to facilitateassembly of the shower head 2 with the elongated aperture 46 in thecorrect position. The aperture 30 further prevents the diaphragm fromrotating within the rim 22 and consequently the elongated aperture 46remains precisely positioned once installed.

The actuating tab 52 is shifted by means of a control lever 54 having anintermediate portion 56 journaled within the mouth portion 8 and anactuator arm 58 disposed at an angle with respect to the intermediateportion 54 and presented within the cavity 14 adjacent to the tab 52. Atits outer end the control lever 54 is provided with a selector arm 60which is also presented at an angle with respect to the intermediateportion 56, but is located outwardly from the mouth portion 8 adjacentto the handle 6 for convenient digital manipulation. Accordingly, whenthe selector arm 60 is moved clockwise when viewed from beyond the endof the mouth portion 8 (FIG. 4), the actuator arm 58 will engage theactuating tab 52 and shift it laterally, thereby causing the valve flap48 to swing away from the elongated aperture 46 and expose the chamber44 to the cavity 14 (FIG. 3)

The control lever 54 further operates a valve element 62 which normallyblocks the aperture 16 and prevents water from flowing into the cavity14 from the inlet channel 12. More particularly, the valve element 62includes a valve stem 64 having a looped or hooked end 65 which receivesthe inner end of the actuator arm 58 on the control lever 54. The otherend of the stem 64 extends through the aperture 16, beyond which it issecured to an enlarged valve disc 66 which, when the actuator arm 58 ispresented in front of the aperture 16, bears against the partition web18 between the guide ribs 20 and forms a fluidtight seal therewitharound the aperture 16. When the actuator arm 58 is moved laterally ineither direction, the hooked end 65 rides across its surface and causesthe stem 64 to move from a position in which it is presented coaxiallywith respect to the axial center line of the aperture 16 to positionswherein it is askew to the axial center line of the aperture 16. In thelatter position, the end face of the valve disc 66 is located at anangle with respect to the partition web 18 and water can pass from theinlet channel 12 through the aperture 16 and into the cavity 14.

The valve element 62 is biased toward its closed position by anelastomeric band 68 which is looped around the mounting post 26 as wellas the hooked end 65 of the valve stem 64.

In use, the shower head 2 is connected to a flexible hose (not shown) atthe threaded bore 10, and that hose in turn is connected to apressurized source of water. If the selector arm 60 is unobstructed, theelastomcric band 68 will draw the hooked end 65 of the valve stem 64toward the mounting post 26 and thereby urge the valve disc 66 towardthe partition web 18 in surrounding relation to the aperture 16 so thatthe aperture 16 is blocked and water cannot flow into the cavity 14. Thepressure of the water within the the inlet channel 12 amplifies theforce exerted on the valve disc 66 by the band 68, and, as a result, thedisc 66 is urged snugly against the partition web 18. The hooked endportion 65, being looped around the control lever 54, will maintain theselector arm 60 in a centered or neutral position.

When the selector lever is rotated counterclockwise as viewed frombeyond the end portion 8 (FIG. 4), the actuator arm 62 rotates in thesame direction away from the tab 52 within the cavity 14. As theactuator arm 62 moves away from its center position, the hooked end 65of the valve stem 64 follows it laterally and tips the valve disc 66 onthe partition web 18 (FIG. 7) so that the end face of the disc 66 movesaway from the aperture 16 and allows water to pass through the aperture16. Continued rotation of the actuator arm 58 causes the hooked endportion 65 to ride across the arm 58 toward the intermediate portion 56and thereby tip the valve disc 66 even further. In such positions waterflows through the aperture 16 at a greater flow rate. The water from theinlet channel 12 enters the cavity 14 and surges against the valve flap58, urging it tightly against the inner side of the diaphragm 34 aroundthe elongated aperture 46 so that a fluidtight seal is thereby formed.Accordingly, the water does not flow into the annular chamber 44, butpasses along the mounting post 26 and the inner faces of the lip 39 onthe diaphragm 34 and discharges from the cavity 14 through the apertures36 in the circular inner segment 40 of the spray disc 32. Since the flowis confined to a reduced area on the spray disc 32, the velocity of theindividual streams of water issuing from the apertures 36 in the innersegment 40 is quite high. Accordingly, when a high intensity spray isdesired, the selector arm 60 is moved such that the actuator arm 58moves away from the actuating tab 52 on the valve actuator 50.

When a softer spray at a substantially equivalent flow rate is desired,the selector arm 60 is rotated in the opposite direction, that isclockwise as viewed from beyond the end portion 8 (FIG. 8). When thisoccurs, the hooked end portion 65 of the valve stem 64 again follows theactuator arm 58 and tips the valve disc 66 off of its seat on thepartition web 18 (FIG. 7), thereby permitting water to flow through theaperture I6 and into the cavity 14. At the same time, the actuator arm58 engages the actuating tab 52 and moves the valve flap 48 away fromelongated aperture 46 so that the surge of water into the cavity 16 doesnot force the flap 48 against the inner side of the annular diaphragm34. Consequently, some of the water flows through the elongated aperture46 into the annular chamber 44 from which it is discharged through theapertures 36 in the annular outer segment 42 of the spray disc 32. Therest of the flow discharges through the apertures 36 in the circularinner segment 40 of the spray disc 32. Since the water is dischargedfrom both the inner and outer segments 40 and 42, respectively, thevelocity of the water jet issuing from each aperture will beconsiderably lower, yet the flow rate through the spray disc 32 will besubstantially the same as in the case of the high intensity spray fromonly the inner segment 40.

When the selector arm 60 is moved to the centered position, theelastomeric band 68 as well as the momentum of the water flowing againstthe upstream side of the valve disc 66 will carry the valve elements 62toward its closed position, and as it moves to this position, the valvedisc 66 will be guided into a centered disposition with respect to theaperture 16 by the tapered guide ribs 20 extending from the partitionweb 18.

Since the tilt of the valve disc 66 with respect to the partition web 18controls the rate at which water passes into the cavity 16, the flowrate through either the circular inner segment 40 or through both theinner segment 40 and the annular outer segment 42 can be varied throughthe manipulation of the selector arm 60 on the control lever 54, theflow rate, of course, being dependent on the amount the selector arm 60is displaced from its centered position.

From the foregoing, it is obvious that shower head 2 is relativelysimple in construction, yet offers a wide selection of sprays, varyingboth in flow rate and intensity.

This invention is intended to cover all changes and modifications of theexample of the invention herein chosen for purposes of the disclosurewhich do not constitute departures from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

Iclaim:

1. A shower head comprising a body having a outwardly opening cavity andan inlet channel communicating with the cavity for admitting fluid tothe cavity, a perforated member extending across the cavity, dividingmeans forming a chamber between a portion of the perforated member andthe cavity whereby the perforated member is divided into a first segmentoverlying the cavity and a second segment overlying the chamber, a valveassociated with the dividing means for optionally admitting fluid to thechamber, and control means for operating the valve whereby the intensityof the spray issuing from the perforated member is variable.

2. A shower head according to claim 1 wherein the perforated member is adisc and the dividing means is a diaphragm having an outwardlyprojecting lip which engages the face of the disc presented inwardlytoward the cavity.

3. A shower head according to claim 1 wherein the dividing means isprovided with a first aperture and the valve means comprises a flapattached to the dividing means and adapted to move from a closedposition wherein the flap overlies the first aperture to open positionswherein the flap is presented within the cavity away from the aperture,and a rigid actuating tab connected to the flap and engageable with thecontrol means.

4. A shower head according to claim 3 wherein the control means is anoperating lever having a portion journaled within the body, and anactuator arm on and presented at an angle with respect to the journaledportion for movement within the cavity when the journaled portion isrotated, the actuator arm being engageable with the actuating tab.

5. A shower head according to claim I wherein the body is provided witha second aperture through which the inlet channel communicates with thecavity, and wherein a valve element is provided for optionally admittingfluid through the second aperture, the valve element being operable bythe control means.

6. A shower head according to claim 4 wherein the body is provided witha second aperture through which the inlet channel communicates with thecavity, wherein a valve element is provided for optionally admittingfluid through the second aperture and includes a valve disc for engagingthe body in surrounding relation to the second aperture upstream fromthe second aperture and a valve stem rigidly connected to the valve discand extending through the second aperture into the cavity where the stemengages the actuator arm, and wherein the actuator arm moves from acentral position in which the valve flap is free to overlie the firstaperture and the valve disc blocks the second aperture to first andsecond open positions, the actuator arm shifting both the actuator taband the valve stem when moved to the first open positions whereby fluidis admitted to the cavity and to the chamber and is discharged throughboth the first and second segments of the perforated member, theactuator arm shifting only the valve stem when moved to the second openpositions whereby fluid is admitted to the cavity and is dischargedtherefrom through only the first segment of the perforated member.

7. A shower head according to claim 6 wherein the body includes a mouthportion in which the cavity is located and a handle portion extendingfrom the mouth portion and containing the inlet channel, wherein thejournaled portion of the control lever extends through the mouthportion, and wherein the control lever further includes a selector armattached to the opposite end of the journaled portion and presentedadjacent to the handle portion.

8. A shower head comprising a body having an outwardly opening cavityand an aperture through which fluid is admitted to the cavity, a valveelement including a valve disc for engaging the body in surroundingrelation to the aperture on the upstream side of the aperture, the valveelement further including a stem rigidly connected to the valve disc andextending through the aperture into the cavity, the stem having a loopedportion located within the cavity, and an operating lever having aportion journaled within the body and an actuator arm on and presentedat an angle with respect to the journaled portion for movement in thecavity when the journaled portion is rotated, the actuator arm extendinginto the looped portion of the stem on the valve element, whereby thelooped portion will move with the actuator arm so as to tilt the valvedisc away from the aperture when operating lever is rotated.

9. A shower head according to claim 8 wherein the body includes a mouthportion in. which the cavity is located and a handle portion extendingfrom the mouth portion and having an inlet channel, the inlet channelcommunicating with the cavity through the aperture which is located in aweb-like partition at the juncture of the mouth and handle portions.

